The “Last Supper” snafu has yet to die down.
More than a week after the Paris Olympics opening ceremony that appeared to parody Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” painting, the Vatican has issued a statement in which it “deplored the offense” caused to Christians. Meanwhile, “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver mocked Donald Trump’s outraged reaction at the ceremony.
“The Holy See was saddened by certain scenes at the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games and cannot but join the voices raised in recent days to deplore the offence done to many Christians and believers of other religions,” the Vatican press office said in an unusual press release issued in French over the weekend.
Related Stories
The incendiary segment in the July 26 ceremony, set against the backdrop of the river Seine, featured drag queens, a transgender model and a singer costumed as Dionysus, the Greek god of wine. It featured LGBTQ+ icon Barbara Butch, who is a DJ and producer and has since filed several police reports after receiving death threats for her participation in the controversial Olympics opening ceremony tableau,
Popular on Variety
Paris 2024 organizers apologized two days later, saying the tableau was inspired by Dionysus and there was no intention to disrespect any religious group.
Oliver on “Last Week Tonight” showed footage of Trump’s reaction, in which the former U.S. president lashed out saying: “I thought it was a disgrace… I mean, they can do certain things, I thought it was, uh… terrible.”
“It’s always strange to watch Trump act like he cares about religion,” Oliver quipped, before referencing Trump’s own comments about Kamala Harris’ race at the National Association of Black Journalists conference. “Because to echo something I heard someone say recently: ‘I didn’t know he was a Christian until a number of years ago, when he happened to turn Christian. All of a sudden, he made a turn and became a Christian person.”
